Welding method and apparatus



Much 17, 1942. J. E. TRAINER 2,276,354

WELDING IETHOD AND APPARATUS I Filed June 3, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 c] mesf, Tra'n r 7 a flaw A fd"! ATTORNEY.

March 17, 1942. J. E. TRAINER WELDING METHQD AND AIPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 3, 19:59

O E m nmw 8 n Efiw '5 F m March 17, 1942. J, E, TRAI ER 2,276,354

WELDING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed June 3, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 F 1' 5 9 leads to M/ainy am s W 200 550 VAC 208 202, 7

j 'f 72 5 We/diny Thmsformer 2l2 Q 0 -C0mro/ 7Z1bes 7:"miny Del ice INVENTOR. BY James E. Trainer ATTORNEY.

March 17, 1942.

J. E. TRAINER WELDING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed June 3, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR.

90 79 /07 m5 Jdmesf. Trainer ATTORNEY.

MWJLM Much 17, 1942. J. 5. TRAINER 2,276,354

WELDING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed June 5, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 F1 5 13 P1? 14 Fig/5 FE T/6 x 105 7106 1 36 Jig/ 1 5 air/70 1 1 1 1 I 190 2 2 I52 I I74 195m 152 )1 192 I 1 "/08 l I l I I? 7/ q; 7] X x Figf l7 Fi 16 Fi 19 X X -b E 7D i 7 W70 l l 1 I i 71' qif OL 71 F1 2 Fig 22 "Q Q I g "k 71 g m &

mvsmoa James 5 Trainer ATTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 17, 1942 WELDING METHOD AND APPARATUS James E. Trainer, Fair-lawn, Ohio, assignor to The Babcock & Wilcox Company, Newark, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application June 3, 1939, Serial No. 277,175

12 Claims.

This invention relates to a method of welding which is particularly advantageous in the resistance butt welding of tubes, rods, and other similar articles.

The invention also relates to the manufacture of large fiat tubular coils, the above referred to welding method being particularly advantageous in the coil manufacture.

- is not only important from the standpoint or eflfecting welds of good quality but also from the standpoint of elimination of welding burrs within the tube. To accomplish this result there must be positive assurance of exact parallelism between the surfaces to be welded and there must be accuracy of registration of the intended areas of contact. When tubular portions of the same diameter are welded, it is important that they be held fixedly in perfect axial alignment with the ends of these portions in parallel planes at right angles to the axis of the completed'tube.

in place in the illustrative machine. It also contemplates a welding method in which the welding current is accurately controlled to provide metal temperatures highenough for welding but not high enough to have any undesirable burning effect.

Other objects of the invention will appear in the following description which refers to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan showing apparatus for carrying out the illustrative method;

' Fig. 2 is mainly a transverse vertical section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, with parts of the milling attachment shown in elevation; V

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section on the section line 3-: of Fig. 2, showing the trackway support and guide for the milling attachment, the motor for driving the milling head being shown in elevation;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view on the section line 44 of Fig. 2, showing the means whereby the upper part of the milling head frame is slidably interlocked with, and supported by, parts fixed with reference to the frame;

Fig. 5 is a view showing the relationship of the milling head to the tube ends to be welded. This.

' view is partly a plan, and partly a horizontal sec- It is an object of the invention to provide apparatus and methods for accomplishing these results.

Among other objects of the invention is the provision of apparatus in which the elements to be welded are held fixedly in alignment while the ends of those elements are simultaneously machined, the machined ends of the elements are welded, and the weld heat treated or normalized. This machine, and the method performed by it, not only prevents distortion of the welded structure during the making of a weld, but it also effects considerable saving in the general welding, operation, inasmuch as it eliminates the lost motion and excessive costs involved in machining of tube ends by one machine at a certain position, the removal of the tubes from the machining apparatus to welding apparatus at another position, the welding of the tubes, and the subsequent employment of separate heat treating operations effected by other independent apparatus. The invention contemplates the performance of all of theseoperations successively, with the tubes held tion through the milling head;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the milling head;- Fig. 7 is a plan similar to Fig. 5 but showing the tube ends abutting and the milling headretracted;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view on a plane through the longitudinal axis of the tube. This view indicates the contour of tube ends after they are milled;

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic view indicating controls for the welding circuit;

Fig. 10 is an elevation of one of the bent tubular elements utilized in the coil manufacture indicated in Fig. 12;

Fig. 11 is an elevation of a hanger one part of which may be slipped over the bent tubular element last welded and another part over one of said elements which is about to be welded to life assembled elements;-

Fig. 12 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a method of manufacturing heat exchanger coils;

Figs. 13-19, inclusive, are diagrammatic views illustrating successive steps of the welding method carried out in the operation of the illustrative apparatus;

Figs. 20, 21, and 22 are vertical sections of the treated tube sections; diagrammatically illustrating steps in the illustrative process;

Fig. 23 is a detail view indicating a manner in which the am I50 may be guided along and interlocked with the bracket I53. This view is taken on the section line 23--23 of Fig. 24; and

Fig. 24 is a detail view of the parts indicated in Fig. 23. This view is a transverse section taken along the section line 24-24 of Fig. 23.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the apparatus includes a main frame I having the parallel longitudinal beams I2 and I4. They are rigidly supported by cross members I5, the entire main frame unit constituting a heavy base which is rigidly secured in position.

The longitudinal beams I2 and I4 serve somewhat as a base on which the rectangular auxiliary frames I8 and are movably supported and guided, each auxiliary frame having a. length about equal to one-half of that of the main frame.

The auxiliary frames I8 and have movements longit idinally of the main frame and they are guided i i such movements by V-type roller bearing mer bers-2Ii--33, rotatably mounted in bearings sup orted by the main frame beams I2 and I4. correspondingly shaped ribs 33-43 operate in the grooves in these roller bearing members and they are held in such position by reason brackets 54-51 to the ends of the longitudinal.

beams I2 and I4 of the main frame. Double acting pistons within these cylinders are connected by the piston rods 60-43 to brackets 64--BI rigid with the auxiliary frames.

0f the tubular members to be welded one of I them is centered and fixed on one auxiliary frame a and the other is simllarlyflxed to the other auxiliary frame in exact alignment with the first member as will be hereafter described. After they are thus fixed the members can be brought to abutting relationship (as diagrammatically shown in Fig. 13) or retracted therefrom by appropriate control of the fluid flow to and from the double acting cylinders 5053.

The means for holding the tubular section IS in the auxiliary frame 20 includes the complementary clamps l2 and "I4 the inner faces of which present a circular opening of a radius substantially equal to the radius of the outside diameter of the tubular member. The clamps are preferably pivotally mounted at a positionbelow the member I0 so that they may be moved to and from their operative positions by the double acting hydraulic cylinders 80 and 82. The latter are fixed respectively to the side frame members and 46 of the auxiliary frame 20 and are associated with piston rods 84 and 85 which may be pivotally connected with the respective clamps I2 and 14. The latter are preferably constructed of metal which has a high degree of heat conductivity and they are preferably hollow so that a cooling fluid may be circulated through them.

The opposing auxiliary frame I8 has main tube clamps 90 and 92 which are similar to the clamps I2 and I4 and similarly connected with the double acting hydraulic cylinders 94 and 96 rigid with the auxiliary frame I8.

Inwardly of the main tube clamps are normalizing clamps 91-100, in most respects similar to the main tube clamps and similarly mounted and controlled by the double acting hydraulic cylinders IOI--i04. These normalizing clamps are preferably of smaller size and they are located much nearer the ends of the tubular members to be welded in order that the normalizing operation may be desirably controlled and limited.

Inwardly toward the center of the entire machine are the welding clamps I05I08. They are so mounted that facing surfaces of pairs of the clamps of the opposite auxiliary frames are closely adjacent the tube ends which are to be butt-welded. These welding clamps are also mounted in a manner similar to the mounting of the clamps above described, and their movements to and. from their operative positions are controlled by the fiow of fluid into the double acting hydraulic cylinders IIO--II3.

As some of the clamps 91-400 and I05--I08 must carry an electric current of considerable magnitude when functioning as hereafter described, it is desirable that they be of a metal of high electrical conductivity, such as copper, and that they also be constructed for internal flow of a cooling fluid.

Control valves, not-shown, are so associated with the double acting hydraulic cylinders that the tube clamps may be caused to grip the tube sections, or to release them, whenever those actions are required in the carrying out of the illustrative method.

Centrally of the machine and arranged for movement transversely of the main frame members I2 and I4 is a tube end forming device herein shown as a motor driven milling attachment generally indicated by the numeral I30. This attachment is movably mounted on brackets I3I which are provided with horizontal guides I32 along which the milling attachment may be moved.

Slidably mounted on the horizontal guides I32 is a carriage I39. This carriage includes a milling cutter and the motor I60 for driving it, the motor being mounted upon a bed plate I40 which is part of the carriage. The bed plate slides upon the upper surfaces of the horizontal guides I32 as indicated in Fig. 3 of the drawings, and lower guide members I33, fixed on the carriage, engage the lower surfaces of the horizontal guides I32 to maintain the carriage in contact with the guides.

The carriage I39 is impelled toward or from the tube sections 10 and II by a double acting hydraulic ram I42, having a piston rod I44 connected to a bracket I43 which is fixed with reference to the carriage. The cylinder of the ram may be fixed to the beam I4 which constitutes a part of the main frame of the machine.

As the carriage moves its milling cutter into position between the tube sections I0 and II, it is important that the movement of the carriage be stopped at a position in which the milling cutter is co-axial with the longitudinal axis of the aligned tubes I0 and 'II. In the illustrative apparatus this is accomplished by an adjustable stop I32 carried on a cylinder I84. The cylinder may be fixed to the brackets I3I and the adjustable stop I82 may contact with an adjustable pintle I83 carried by the bracket M6.

The carriage I39 has rigid therewith a hollow slideway-I 5I whichis formed in a bracket or frame I33 which, in. turn, is fixed to the main frame of the machine. The slideway I5I in the bracket I53 is supported from the I-beam I55through the brackets I51 and the tie-rod I59, as indicated in Fig. 4 of. the drawings. The slideway and the top of the cutter arm I50 may'be formed with interenga'ging tongued and grooved por- 53. This involves the movement of the auxiliary frames Hand 20. This movement is continued tions which co-operate to cause the arm I50 to be rigidly held to a fixed part of the frame in order that the cutter head may be accurately maintained in-its operative position when the.

milling attachment carriage is moved so as to bring the cutter head into the position in which it is indicated in Figs. '2 and 5 of the drawings.

The worm wheel of the cutter head is formed with counter-bores which fit raised nortions on the faces of the cutters I12 and I14, and these cutters are held in place on the worm wheel by head screws I15. These screws thus key the cutters to the worm wheel to form a unitary cutter head. Power from the motor I60 is imparted to the cutter head by means of the spur gears I62 and I64, the shaft I66,- and a worm I68 meshing with the worm wheel I10 and rotatable in bearings fixed with reference to the cutter head arm I50. e

The worm wheel I10 is rotatably' mounted in bushings III held in place by a cover plate I13 and the cap screws I 11 which project through the plate.

Provided at the end of the cutter arm I50 opposite the motor I60 and normal to the longitudinal axis XX of the welding machine are provided demountable and interchangeable shims I90 and I92. These shims are mounted on the opposite side of the transverse axis Y- -Y and at equal distances therefrom so as to act as stops to position the tube sections I0 and II in centralized relation with reference to the milling cutter. Other stops I94 and I96 are provided, one on each side of the transverse axis Y--Y of the cutter head, to act as gauges for the clamping jaws I I 08 and thus prevent the over-milling of the tube sections when the milling operation has been completed.

The milling attachment operating cycle With the cutter head I52 located approximately at the position shown in Figs. 7 and 13 of the drawings and the tube clamps I05-I08, as well as the other tube clamps, open the tube sections are placed in position to be'gripped by the clamps, and the clamps I05I00 are partially closed by the appropriate control of fluid flow tothe double acting cylinders I I0l I3.

The auxiliary frames I8 and 20 are then moved to such positions that there will be enough space between the tube end held'by the clamps I 05--I06 and the tube end held by the clamps I07 and I08 to permit the cutter head to be moved into position between the tube ends. This action is indicated by Figs. 13' and 14 of the drawings. The ram I42 is then operated to move the cutter head I52 transversely toward the axis as indicated in Fig. 14 and it is brought to a stop with the centers of its shim plates I90 and I92 on that axis.

The tube clamps I05I08 and the tube sections I0 and l I arethen moved into contact with the shim plates by appropriate control of fluid flow to the hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders 50 until the tube ends contact the shims and the clamps engage the dowel pins or auxiliary stops clamps being opened, if necessary, and the tube sections I0 and II moved in order that the shims and stops will be properly contacted. After these contacts are properly made the clamps I 05I08 are completely closed with 'pressure sufllcient to keep the clamped tubes from moving relative to the clamping members. The auxiliary frames I8 and 20 are now moved backwardly from the central plane Y--Y and the-cutter attachment is moved into the space between the tube ends (as indicated in Fig. 16) until the longitudinal axis of the cutter head is co-incident with the axis XX, the movement of the cutter head being stopped by the members I82I84. The tube ends are then moved against the cutters by control of the fluid flow to cylinders 5053 and power is switched to the motor I60 and the cutters I I2 and I14 start revolving. The auxiliary frames I8 and 20 are then moved toward the central axis YY so that the tube ends are brought into contact with the revolving cutters (as indicated in Fig. 17) and the ends of the tubes are milled until this operation is brought to a termination by contact of the auxiliary stops I94 and I96 with the tube clamps I05I08 (see Fig. 18).

After the milling operation is completed the auxiliary frames I8 and 20 are then retracted (see Fig. 19) by appropriate control of fluid flow to the double acting cylinders 50-53 and the rotation of the milling cutter is stopped.

The ram 1 I42 is then operated to retract the carriage I39 and the cutter head to the position at which it is shown in Figs. 7 and i the drawings, it being understood that the tube clamps I2, 14, 90, and 92 supplement clamps I05I08 and hold the tube sections 10 and II rigid therewith during, the milling operation and all subsequent operations constituting parts of the illustrative method.

The milling cutter is such as to shape the aligned and facing tube ends with the arrangement of the surfaces indicated in Figs. 8 and 20 of the drawings. Fig. 8 indicates a section through contacting ends on one side of the J'unction of tubes I0 and II with the line AB representing the inside surface of the tubes. With this formation the tubes will have a line contact alon the circumference of a circle one point of which is indicated at D. The accurate machining of the tubes to give this circumferential line contact, and the maintenance of the machined surfaces in parallelism are features by which the present invention promotes the economical formation of high quality welds, and when the illustrative method is employed in the manufacture of heat exchanger coils the invention possesses the attribute of rapidly forming high quality welds without the production of any appreciable burr or any internal push-up of the metal within the tubes. Such defects are avoided by the particular relationship of the machined surfaces of the facing tube ends. Such surfaces are indicated in "Fig. 8 of the drawings. They involve the surfaces tion and timing of the subsequent welding operation, and the relationship of the surfaces represented by the lines DH, HE, and DE of Fig. 8. As shown. the surfaces represented by the lines DE and GH form an angle of 20 degrees, and a similar angle is formed by continuation of the line GH and the surface represented thereby with the line HE and the surface represented by the latter line. Similarly,

the surfaces represented by the lines FD and GH also form an angle approximately 20 degrees when the machined tube ends are brought into contact at the point D for welding.

Welding circuit control The welding clamps IDS-I08 may be considered as terminals of an electric welding circuit which is brought. into .operationafter these clamps are operated to grip the. with considerable pressure.',- -Thejwelding circuit is fed from a 22,000 volt high tension-line'rthrough a 4500 k. v. a. transformer and thesecondary voltage of this transformer, 550'v'olts,' isfed through two ignitron power tubes to.-.; 'a'-.welding transformer. This equipment is a ..-part of the weld-- ing circuit whichis schematically illustrated in Fig. 9 of the drawings, Heregthg welding transformer is indicated-at 200 as: fed by the 550 volt line represented at 202 and 204. The ignitron tubes 206 and 208 are connected in parallel and inversely to each other, and are placed in series in the 550 volt power line as indicated. They are mercury arc rectifyingtubes consisting of a single anode, a single mercurypool cathode, and a special ignitor, all enclosed in a steel tank which is evacuated by a pumping system. Each ignitron tube passes half-wave current'when its ignitor is carrying current so that the tubes inversely connected in parallel pass full-wave current to the welder when the control circuit is operated.

The timing of the power supp y is accomplished by means of an electronic circuit connected to the ignitors of the ignitron tubes. tronic timer performs the function of a rapid acting, single throw, single pole switch and the electronic circuit measures out the required number of cycles of welding current at each operation of the welding switch. Upon the closing of the welding switch the timing tubes Ill reverse their grid potentials, causing the control tubes M2 to send current to the ignitor of the ignitron tubes, the latter thereupon arc and.

send power to the welding machine.

The duration of the welding period is deterthe termination of the welding. period, variable by means of adjustment of the timing device, the condenser is sumciently charged to reverse the Thiselec Aftei' the completion of the machining operatiohffand after the machine attachment with its cutter'head I52 has been retracted by the operation of the ram M2, the flow of fluid to the hydraulic cylinders 5l53 is so controlled that the tube .ends are again moved in toward the plane of the central axis Y-Y until the ma- 5;

chined faces of the tube ends are in contact. Then, with the tube sections held fixedly in position by the pressure of the tube clamps thereagainst the welding current is switched on and there is a simultaneous application of end pressure to the tubes.

High pressures are employed of the welding transfor forcing the tube endstoward each other but these pressures will vary with different tubes '5 of different diameters and of different materials. For a 1.5 inch diameter tube, with'a 0.126 inch wall, a pressure of 8000 lb. may beeffectively second). the welding circuit as automatically determined by the operation of the control apparatus above described.

With the above indicated procedure the welding takes place just after the tube ends have been machined. The tubes 'are still maintained in the same grips or clamps for'both the machining and welding operations. This method not only assures an accurate welding set-up but 1 used with: a welding period of seven cycles (0.117 This is th interval of application of it involves considerable advantage as a time saver.

Due to the h'eavywelding currents employed in the illustrative processes flashing between the g electrode clamps and the tubes would occur if the contact between the clamps and the tubes. was not sufliciently complete. It has been found that it is impossible to secure such complete contact with hot finished tubing as it is received j from the mill and it has therefore been necessafy to prepare the tube ends to be welded by cold swedging. The ends of each tube are, therefore,

so prepared for a length of approximately 24 f inches. e A

The normalizing cycle After the weld is completed as above described the normalizing clamps "PL-I00 are operated by their hydraulic cylinders lOl-llll to cause the tubes to be gripped with high pressure at; the positions of those clamps. The welding clamps I 05l0l are thereafter opened up so as to releas the tubes at the positions of thosei clamps. Thecurrent is again switched on, and passing through the normalizing clamps 9ll0ll in automatically controlled amounts, it subjects the ends of the tubes to a normalizing heat treating operation to eliminate excessive residual i stresses due to the welding. A photo-electric cell may be employed to control the circuit during the normalizing operation and to determine the maximum metal temperatures induced by; that circuit. E

The coil manufacture The illustrative welding apparatus is advantageously employed in the-manufacture of heat exchanger coils in the manner indicated in Fig. 12 of the drawings. This figure shows an incomplete coil, supported above the welding machine by chain hoists 250 and 252 portable along a trackway 254. As each weld is completed the hoists are operated to elevate the superposed coil sections to an extent sufiicient'to bring the next tube section into operative position between the electrode clamps of the welding apparatus.

Fig. 12 may be considered as showing the tube sections 260 and 262 in operative position between the welding clamps for the completion of a weld at 264. After the weld is completed at thisposition the clamps are released and the hoists 250 and 252 are'operated so as to bring the longitudinal axis of the tube section 266 in alignment with the circular openings between the pairs of tube clamps. To bring this about the coil' section above the welding machine is not only elevated but it must be moved as a unit laterally so as to bring the end of the tube section 266 into a position about mid-way of the tube clamps lll5l01. The tube section 266 is then gripped by the tube clamps l2 and I4, and a return bend coil section such as that indicated at'268 in Fig. of the drawings is placed in operative position so that the end portion 210 of its longer arm will be opposite the end of the portion 266 gripped by the clamps 12 and 14. The tube portion 210 is then gripped by the clamps 90 and 92 and the machining, welding, and normalizing operations above described are carried out.

superposed tube sections of the successive coils may be tied together by hanger elementssimilar to that indicated at 280 in Fig. 11. This hanger element is of the Spectacle type involving the end loops 282 and 284 for the reception of the straight tubular sections of the coils.

When tie members, or hangers of the type indicated in Fig. 11, are used one of them will be slipped upon the tube section 260 before that section is gripped by the clamps of the welding apparatus. Similarly, the tie member will be slipped over the tubular portion 266 before it is placed in operative position in the welding apparatus. Thereafter, the individual return bend tube section 268 willhave its long arm threaded through the tie member or hanger member 280 which has had its other end threaded upon the tubular portion 260 and this action will take place before the end portion 210 of the return bend tube 268. is clamped in welding position by the clamps 90 and H11. In this way, after the coil is removed from the welding machine, the

fabrication of the coil has been practically completed.

Whereas, in compliance with the Revised Statutes, and particularly section 4888 R. S., the invention has been described with reference to the disclosure of a certain specific embodiment, it is to be appreciated that the invention'is not limited to all of the details thereof. It is rather to be taken as of a scope commensurate with the scope of the subioined claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a resistance welding machine, relatively movable work holders for separately gripping metallic workpieces and maintaining them in a predetermined welding relationship and in the same grip during the machining of their opposing and said means also being operative reversely' to withdraw said attachment from its operative position to permit the welding of the workpieces, and means for moving the work holders to bring the ends of the workpieces together subsequent to the machining operation.

2. The method of resistance welding which comprises separately fixing tubular workpieces so that they will be maintained accurately aligned and in welding relationship as they are moved to and from a forming and welding zone, then simultaneously preparing the welding faces of-- the workpieces with at least portions in parallelism for interracial registering contact throughout said portions, engaging said portions in parallelism, and including the workpieces in a welding circuit for a co-ordinated pressure time temperature interval to integrally unite the workpieces throughout the areas of the welding faces.

3. A method of welding which comprises'fixing and maintaining metallic workpieces in a predetermined relationship while they are movedto or from a machining and welding zone, simultaneously machining the opposing weld faces of the workpieces to weld determining contours by exerting converging pressures on the workpieces toward said zone and against an interposed machining head, directly thereafter engaging the machined faces, and including the workpieces in a welding circuit for a co-ordinated pressure time pieces to weld determining contours for interfacial engagement in registration throughout prescribed areas, including the workpieces in a resistance welding circuit and simultaneously engaging the machined faces of the separately fixed workpieces for a co-ordinated pressure time temperature interval integrally uniting the articles metallically throughout the prepared areas.

5. In a method of welding, simultaneously machining the welding faces of two workpieces to registering and weld determining contours, pressing the contoured faces into engagement and simultaneously including the workpieces in an electrical welding circuit for a co-ordinated pressure time temperature interval to produce a weld at the engaged faces, and maintaining the workpieces in a certain predetermined relationship during said machining and welding operations. I

6. A metal treating method which includes the simultaneous machining of the weld forming portions of two workpieces; resistance welding the workpieces at the machined faces; electrically normalizing the workpieces adjacent the weld; and-maintaining the workpieces in the same pre-" machining head into the welding zone, means for simultaneously and equally moving the adjacent ends of the tubes toward each other and against the cutters of said head to cause the opposin faces of the tube ends to be machined to the desired contour, means retracting the machinin head after the tubes are moved apart to release the head, and means introducing the tubes into an electric welding circuit after their machined ends are brought into engagement, said first named means maintaining the tubes in the same grip and in the same axial alignment during all of said operations.

8. In a resistance welding machine, means separately maintaining metallic workpieces in a predetermined welding relationship during convergent and divergent translatory movements of the workpieces permitting the simultaneous machining of the opposed surfaces of the workpieces and the subsequent pressing of the machined surfaces into welding engagement, a machining head, means interposing said head between said surfaces to subsequently permit the formation of weld determining contours by convergent movement of the workpieces against said head, and means for resistance welding the workpieces after said head has been retracted to permit said amfacesto be brought into welding engagement.

9, In a resistance welding machine, means fixing two endwise arranged tubes in axial alignment and maintaining them in such alignment during subsequent milling of the facing tube ends and resistance welding of milled ends; a retractible milling cutter; and means operating to cause the tubes to simultaneously and equally converge against the interposed cutter and to be reversely moved to allow the cutter to be retracted; said means also operating to movethe milled ends of the tubes into engagement and pressing them together while a weldingcurrent is passed therethrough; all of these operations taking place while the tubes are maintained in their originally fixed axial alignment by the first named means,

10. In a method of manufacturing tubular coils each consisting of a plurality of return bend sections, forming tube lengths into similar return bend sections, clamping the complementary I end portions of two return bend sections in axial j alignment and in end-to-end relationship, ma- 3 chining the aligned ends to welding contours j while they are thus clamped, resistance welding;

the machined ends together while they are;

clamped in the same relationship, supporting the welded sections and moving them so that the unwelded end of the last section is brought into welding position, and then similarly welding successive return bend sections until the complete coil, is formed.

11. A method of manufacturing return bend;

heat exchanger coils; the method including the formation of similar return bend sections; as-

sembling two of said sections and connecting hangers; clamping the complementary portions of the assembled'return bend sections in axial alignment and in end-to-end relationship; ma-

chining the endfaces of said complementary portions .to welding contours while they remain in the clamped relationship; resistance weldingi said portions at the machined faces while theyi are held in their original alignment; moving the welded assembly and supporting it so that the? unwelded end of the last welded section is;

brought into welding position; and efiecting simiing the complementary long and short legs of;

two return bend sections in axial alignment and; in end-to-end relationship, machining the; aligned ends to welding contours while they are;

thus clamped, resistance welding the machined? s CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION- Petent No. ,276,5514. March 1?, 191 .2,

7 JAMES E. TRAINER.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 5, sec- 0nd column, line 11., claim 1, strike out "to operative position" and insert the same before "between" in line 5, same claim, and line 7, same claim 1, strike out "and" and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 5th day of August, A.-D. 19L 2.

Henry Van Arsdale, (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents.

M CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION. Petent No. 76,55 March 17, 19142.

' JAMES E. TRAINER.

It ishereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 5, second column, line 14., claim l, strike out Y'to operativeposition" and insert the same before "between" in line 5, same claim, and line 7, same claim 1, strike out "and"; and that the said Letters Patent should be read 1 with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 5th day of August, A.- D. 17911.

Henry Van Arsdale,

(Seel) I Acting Commissioner of Patents.-

- o CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION. Patent No. ,276,551. .March 17, 191 .2,

JAMES E. TRAINER.

It ishereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 5, second column, line 1;, claim, l, strike out Y'to operativeposition" and insert the same before "between" in line 5, same claim, and line 7, same claim 1, strike out "-and; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 25th day of August, A. D. 19M.

Henry Van. Arsdale (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

